


I bet he made a handy chart to explain this mess

by youcantsaymylastname



Series: Kraken aren't just monsters -- they're pointmen too [1]
Category: Inception (2010)
Genre: Aftermath of Violence, M/M, Non-Graphic Violence, Oblivious Arthur, Pining Eames, Tentacles, Were-Creatures, mentions of captivity, mentions of previous torture
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-05
Updated: 2016-07-05
Packaged: 2018-07-21 18:38:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,901
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7399009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/youcantsaymylastname/pseuds/youcantsaymylastname
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Mal's new protege has been keeping secrets about his life before dreamsharing.<br/>Eames sits down with Mal in a cafe to discuss Arthur's strange reactions but is Eames ready to hear the truth about the mysterious pointman?</p>
            </blockquote>





	I bet he made a handy chart to explain this mess

**Author's Note:**

> There is no torture in the story but there are references to it. Likewise there's no sexual content but there's hinting that something might have happened in the past to Arthur before Mal and Eames met him. 
> 
> This is my first Inception Bingo square fill. Read the notes at the end... because I don't want to give much away yet!

Eames knew about Arthur’s (secret) heritage even before Mal pulled him aside quietly in the hidden café in the 3rd arrondissement, the one Mal was partial to because they made her a café au lait no matter what time of day it was. 

Mal gripped her bowl of milky coffee tightly as she sat wearily across from Eames. Eames reclined on the fading red banquette knowing Mal would speak only when she was ready. Mal daintily sipped her coffee eyeing Eames carefully, her perfect eyebrows scrunched in concentration.

“When Dominic found… Arthur, he was locked up in an American Army laboratory in Ansbach.” A shiver slid down Mal’s back, her clinging Dior dress refusing to hide her fear. 

Eames schooled his features as best he could. If Mal realized Eames had feelings for the uptight pointman, it’d only give her more ammunition for her teasing and matchmaking. It was best not to react to Arthur’s past. Eames lounged languidly at their tiny table, his legs stretched out, holding his café crème to his lips for a taste before nodding at Mal to continue. 

“The American Army began their covert dream share experiments in the late 90s, but in the last several years began forcing their enlisted troops with therianthropy into the dream sharing units. The military wanted a tactical advantage in and out of the dreams. When Arthur refused to use his animorphism to harm enemy combatants, his superiors drugged and tried physically coercing him to keep the experiments happening.”

Mal finished her café au lait. She gestured elegantly to the barkeep for another one. Eames held up his empty mug as well, wishing he was drinking scotch instead. His gorgeous, angry boy had been abused by his superiors, people he trusted. No wonder Arthur aggressively antagonized anyone who tried to get close to him. 

Eames couldn't hide his feelings or his need to know more about Arthur’s mysterious past. He sat up and leaned his arms on the rickety table, edging closer to Mal. Eames stared hard at her, watching her beautiful face twist in disgust as she thought at about her dear friend locked away in a medical facility being experimented on against his will. 

”What did those bastards make him do?” said Eames, scowling darkly at his empty coffee cup. 

Arthur’s whole persona screamed “do not touch me”. His slicked back hair, his dark mistrustful stares, his perfectly tailored clothes that spoke of wealth, entitlement and aloofness, his crossed arms and weary facial expressions which said “keep away” in big bold letters! 

Arthur hated to be touched, shying away from a friendly hand on his shoulder or purposely choosing to sit on chairs that were solitary. He stood away from the group, keeping his distance and appearing rude and unapproachable.

Arthur had once growled like a hungry rottweiler at an architect who dared to clap him on the back for a job well done. Another time, he flipped Ebele on her back when she grabbed his arm after tripping on a wire in their office. (Arthur had turned beet red and apologized profusely to a shaken Ebele. Arthur excused himself, leaving the warehouse immediately afterwards. He didn't return for a week.) Eames noted every example of Arthur’s unusual behaviour assuming it was an affectation, not a reaction to previous trauma. 

“You understand why I am sharing his history with you?” demanded Mal, feisty and determined. She glared at Eames, eyes scrunched, waiting for Eames to lie so she could scold him. Mal knew how Eames really felt about her protégé. 

Eames leaned back, once again trying to ease his shoulder tension. There was no point lying to Mal. She had watched and evaluated every teasing touch or comment Eames ever made to Arthur. Eames had flirted shamelessly with Arthur ever since they were introduced by the Cobbs but Arthur blithely ignored his tasteless jokes and pet names. The more Arthur ignored him, the more Eames tried to break through Arthur’s icy reserve. 

\---------  
But last week in London, something had changed. 

Arthur and Eames attempted an extraction with Cobb and Mal. The crooked politician they’d tried to steal secrets from had been militarized.

Arthur had warned Cobb that this was a possibility, but the team had never experienced about a militarized mind. Arthur shook his head disappointedly when Cobb ignored his very detailed advice and several well made pie and bar graphs that proved his hypothesis. 

Arthur seemed young and inexperienced, even in his expensive designer suits, demanding to be trusted but stomping out in a huff when Dom told Arthur he was being paranoid and spreading dreamshare myths as truths. 

But Arthur had been spot on. The politician's mind had been a bloody nightmare. Menacing trees with horrific faces devoured Dom within minutes of being under. Mal was almost decapitated by a cute woodland elf swinging a sharp axe as she sang a death aria. 

Mal had suggested a forest maze based on the proximity of said forest to the politician's childhood home, yet they'd never considered the dark creatures that could pop up from all the dark corners of the once bright and welcoming forest to try and annihilate them. 

The secrets had been hidden in a precariously hanging, dilapidated tree fort, deep in the haunted woods. Once they procured the information and committed it to memory, Arthur shot them out of the dream. 

Eames woke up first glaring at Dom, wishing they had listened to the pointman who obviously tried to warn them for a reason. 

Mal woke up with a start, eyes wide, but sat up calmly, thanking Eames for saving her from all the beasts hidden in the trees. 

Arthur’s eyes opened slowly. His face showed his fear and panic before he hid his emotions behind that beautiful blank mask Eames was beginning to despise.

Arthur pulled the cannula out of his arm carefully but Arthur’s eyes couldn't hide his fear. Even though Arthur had hidden most of his feelings behind a blank face, his forehead had wrinkled just a bit. 

Eames couldn't help himself. When Arthur stood up in front of him, Eames tried to smooth out those worry lines that showed Arthur’s true self. 

“Darling, are you okay?” said Eames, concerned. Arthur’s blank expression changed rapidly as Eames ran his fingers across Arthur’s forehead, trying to sooth him. 

One minute, Eames was staring into Arthur’s dark eyes, and the next minute, Eames was pushed aggressively against the wall, his arm twisted painfully behind him, an angry, heavy-breathing Arthur pushing and twisting behind him. Eames knew his arm was seconds from being broken. Arthur growled menacingly as he tried to protect himself from unwanted touches. 

“I won't tell you again, asshole. You don't own me. I'm not your pet…” Arthur barked aggressively in Eames’ ear before realizing where he was and who he was shoving against the wall. 

Arthur’s body seemed to lose all the air in it. He slumped against Eames as he let go of his arm. Eames stood still. Would Arthur turn on him again? What did Arthur mean by his outburst?

Eames desperately wanted to pull Arthur close, keeping him safe, but safe for Arthur meant not being touched or given any type of physical affection. 

“Mon Chou, can we help?” said Mal softly. Cobb had moved away from Arthur and Eames, eyes wide but staying blessedly silent. Cobb was not known for his tact. 

Arthur sighed into Eames’ shoulder still leaning against him, probably unaware of his proximity to Eames. Arthur panted heavily in Eames’ ear as if he couldn't catch his breath. The demons Arthur struggled to keep under wraps had escaped. Eames worried that Arthur would do another runner like he’d done in Moscow. 

“We need to leave before the mark wakes up,” chided Dom, looking over at the sleeping politician. Arthur lifted his head off of Eames’s shoulder, smiling weakly, then he shook his head, his blank mask replacing the small smile before Arthur started packing up the PASIV. 

Eames and Mal glanced at each other mouthing the word -- Paris. Eames knew he wouldn't set eyes on Arthur again in London or anywhere else until Arthur no longer felt embarrassed. 

\-----

Eames asked Mal again, “What did they do to him?”

“Do you know his therianthropic form?” Mal asked softly when she finally decided what to say. Mal swirled her café au lait trying not to look at Eames. He could see Mal was torn about whether to share this secret without permission from her friend. 

Eames debated lying, wondering if he could guess Arthur’s true form but Arthur had never once given a clue about his animal form. Eames guessed instead, “I’ve imagined him a cunning lupus, or weary avian, perhaps even a jackalope. Imagine our Arthur as a fluffy black bunny with antlers, he'd be both cute and fearsome.”

Mal shook her brown curls but smiled at Eames’ guesses. How close was he?

”Mon puce, je suis desolé. Those are fanciful ideas but Arthur has kept his animorph secret for a reason. He's not cute or cuddly.” Mal paused. She took a deep breath. Eames worried. What could Arthur possibly be that would upset him? A rhino? Oursa? Noctillio? Arthur would be an adorable brown bat. 

“He’s a kraken. That's why the army wanted him so badly.” Mal looked around fearfully as though Arthur or possibly the CIA might jump out from behind the bar. Arthur was still wanted by the American government after going MIA.

Eames wasn't sure what to say. Kraken. Arthur had tentacles. Krakens were legendary. There were subsets of Japanese porn which featured kraken males and females using their tentacles in many adventurous ways. How could his sedate, quiet Arthur hide his true identify so well? Eames felt sure Arthur would be a sleek wolf or cuddly bunny. 

Eames processed what Mal told him before grabbing her delicate hand in his and squeezing, realizing what the Army had forced Arthur to do. 

“They wanted him to use his tentacles as a means of extracting information. Was he coerced into sexually assaulting terrorists for information?” Eames asked as his eyes widened, realizing the magnitude of what Arthur might have suffered through. If they drugged him to make his tentacles appear, if they used sedating or hallucinogens drugs, Arthur may not have been able to control his mutation. Eames shuddered, wanting to heave, but Eames tried to breath carefully to bring down his heart rate and his urge to torture everyone who had been privy to Arthur’s degradation. 

“Cobb thinks Arthur had been held hostage for upwards of a year in the lab. He spent days drugged and in solitary confinement. Sometimes he was dreaming and other times he was awake. It's possible Arthur was never even sure what was real and what was a dream.” Mal held Eames hand, turning it over to look at his palm, tracing the lifeline delicately with her finger. 

“We took him to the top dream therapists for months before Arthur asked to come and work with us. We hesitated momentarily but Arthur is a capable man who wants to put his time in the army behind him.” Mal smiled tiredly. “You must tread lightly, mon puce. He's brilliant. He’s also breakable. I'm worried that you might break his heart.”

Eames laughed hollowly. “I think you might be wrong Mal. I think he just broke mine.”

**Author's Note:**

> Tentacles. (My first bingo square)  
> Arthur has tentacles. He's a were-kraken!  
> I wanted to do porn. I really did. But then I made the gif. Then the story attacked me and it was the opposite of sexy porn... sorry.  
> Thank you to Chasingriver who cheered me on while I made the gif and did some beta-ing even though she's super busy. A thousand thank yous!!!!


End file.
